Labels in alcohol

[P.Petry-J.D.Wightman]

Folks,
        Laser printed labels won't resist long in liquid media, the letter
will fall off the paper. I talked to the ink engeneers at HP and they told
me that it has to do with the process used to fix the ink on the paper.
Similar information was relayed to me by Julian Hamphries, when he tested
laser printed labels some years back.
Specimens that have a lot of fat, which the alcohol will extract over
time, represent a bigger problem. The fat attacks the bonding agent of the
ink very fast and the letters simply slide of the paper. Karsten Hartel
can tell you his experience at the MCZ fish collection, in his words, "you
end up with a alphabet soup at the bottom of the jars".  The best solution
is still the use of pure ink dot matrix ribbons, which can be ordered from
automated offices inc., in conjuction with resistall paper. I believe you
can find the information at the ASIH collections supplies commettee web
page.
Another option is to spray each lable with an acrylic coating, which a few
people have tested and it seems to work, yet the cost per label goes up
quite abit.


Best Fishes,

Figure 1- Tambaqui feeding on fruits from the flooded forest
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